What does planetary nebula mean?
• PLANETARY NEBULA (noun) The noun PLANETARY NEBULA has 1 sense: 1. a nebula that was once thought to be a star with its planets but is now thought to be a very hot star surrounded by an expanding envelope of ionized gases that emit a fluorescent glow because of intense radiation from the star Familiarity information: PLANETARY NEBULA used as a noun is very rare.